Chapter Text
Will’s head collided with the concrete slab, a pang of energy fuming off him. The bang radiated into a rhythmic motion, letting the effects of the past moments settle in. Mike’s eyes glazed over. His mind wandered to only Will and his lifeless body sprawled amongst the ground.
“Will!” Mike screamed, scrambling to reach his friend.
The rest of the world seemed to be on pause. Everything that seemed to matter before, ceased into an after thought. Mike could only feel the beating of his heart as he met Will’s side. The murmur of indistinct voices and the crackle of fire all became background noise. The feeling of blood trickling down his forehead, nothing more than an obstacle of sight…sight only focused on Will.
Mike fled to his knees, hands shaking like crazy. “Will!? Hey..Hey..I’m right here.” Mike shook Will’s shoulders gently, careful not to hurt him. “Please wake up..please.” He guided his hand to Will’s neck, checking for a pulse. He focused deeply to find a beat, whispering to himself in prayer.
A faint rhythm made way onto Mike’s fingers. Relief flooded his mind in an instant. His hands hovered over the boy’s limp body, not sure where to put them. He studied Will’s agonized face at that moment, wondering if he’d get the chance to again. Blood stained nose, fluttering eyes, bruised temple…pursed lips. All creating an image that Mike promised he’d never have to see again.
“Will!” Joyce’s voice broke through Mike’s trance. He saw her figure rushing over, panic ensuing her features.
She reached Mike, her breath uneven and shallow.
“Is he-” She dropped down beside the two, reaching for her son’s hand.
“He’s alive..barely. We need- we need to go, get out of here. I- don’t- I don’t know how much time he has or what in the hell just happened-” Mike’s voice stopped short. He couldn’t continue speaking because it dawned on him quietly,like a fallen memory returning to his senses…Will has powers, and he saved Mike’s life.
Joyce gave him a subtle look of sympathy before collaborating with his urgency.
“Try and find the kids, see if any fled or are hiding…I’ll stay with Will-”
Mike intervened quickly. “No..I can stay with him..I- don’t..I can’t-” Lose him.
Mike didn’t understand why he was feeling this way. He’d always cared for and protected Will…but this..this was different. Why can’t he leave Will’s side? Why is it killing him piece by piece to see him like this and why can’t he understand any of it?
The questions loomed in Mike’s brain, a swirl of panic and something else unknown brewing deep within. He let out a breath. Will’s mom should stay with him, not his friend.
“I’m-I’m sorry Ms. Byers, I’ll try and find the kids..you stay with him.” Mike said warily, catching one more glimpse of Will’s lifeless body before standing abruptly.
He didn’t even give her a chance to respond before dusting himself off and treading the opposite way. A pit sized ache lurched in his stomach. It was like a magnetic pull that yearned to return to Will, to make sure he was safe, to make sure he’s not gone forever.I mean, that’s what anybody would feel for their friend…their best friend..
Right?
_________
Mike sat anxiously, his foot tapping solemnly on the wooded floor. His hands were folded across his face, his breathing heavy. The tapping of his foot kept his mind occupied-from things beyond the room he so harshly wished to leap too.
With a thorough search, the kids were nowhere to be found and probably half-way to Vecna’s lair by now. After time to think by himself, Mike was contempt in keeping a firm distance from Will, just until he could figure out what in the hell was happening. But of course, with Joyce unable to carry Will by herself, Mike had to help. With one arm strown tightly around Will’s waist, and the other holding the boy’s arm in place, he felt like he was in a haze. The little distance between the two seemed to ignite a different spur of feelings inside…and along with everything else he was expeirncing…it made him terrified.
Robin came full force with a presumed stolen van before long. Murray was slumped in the passenger seat, blood spewing from his temple, and Lucas in the back with cuts along his chest. The whole crew combined were in bad shape…but Mike’s only concern deep down was for Will- which only terrified him more.
The whole ride, Mike couldn’t stop staring. He tried to create any physical distance possible but he couldn’t stop his eyes from wandering down at the boy in front of him. Still so helpless, still so…vulnerable. God. Mike wished he could just get a damn grip but every time his eyes moved away, his mind kept replaying the scene of Will with his hands raised, being the most badass superhero he’d ever seen.
That’s when a single tear fell from Mike’s eyes. He once thought the same thing about El…and he knew right then and there that he was screwed.
The present moment brought him back, sitting in El’s room of all places, the place where she broke up with him not too long ago.
1 month ago. He remembered it clearly, them sitting hand in hand while talking for nearly 3 hours. They had been fighting for a long time and even with Mike’s attempt to restore whatever hope he had left for them, he knew it was their time. But instead of the classic “I dump your ass” they both agreed to stay on positive terms. They just could never find the right time to tell their friends and family. So while they put on their smiling faces and tried to stay up to par on couply things, everything just kinda stayed the same. Except for the one thing Mike knew he’d have to face eventually.
As soon as they reached the cabin, Robin persistently tried to take Mike’s position in helping Will. And thank God she did because he needed to be alone for the foreseeable future. And now, for what seemed like hours, Mike sat with an undeniable sense of guilt that he wished would just go away. Will was right outside the door, presumably still knocked out but breathing, and Mike could so easily walk out there and see him and sit in his presence and wait for him to wake up. That's what his mind wanted, that’s what his heart longed for, but Mike himself..couldn’t do it.